Metal feeding apparatus



Aug. 29, 1939- c. JORDAN El" AL 81 METAL FEEDING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 5, 1939 Cornelius Jordan Edurqrd JHlzbelmeg er k map QT'TLZQKS Patented Aug. 29, 1939 UNITED STATES PAT E'N'T OFF lE METAL FEEDING APPARATUS tion of New York Application January 5,

5 Claims.

This invention relates to type metal ingot feeding apparatus and more particularly to a hook to be attached to the feeding chain of an automatic type metal feeder.

For sometime, metal ingots have been cast in a-m-anner to provide a hole at one-end thereof for association with the hooks of automatic type metal feeders whereby the ingots may be readily associated with feeders and suspended therefrom above a melting pot. Such ingots have had the disadvantage of not being completely melted by'simply automatic operation of the machine. It was necessary for the operator to manually dislodge the small ear that remained on the feeder hook when the ingot had been lowered to its fullest extent. More recently, slotted eared ingots have been devised to facilitate the automatic slipping off of the ingot ear when the feeder chain has reached its lowest point whereby the operator need not'manua-lly dislodge the unmelted ear. Such slip-01f ingots are illustrated in the HostetlerPatent No. 2,072,817, granted March 2, 1937.

When this new form of ingot is associated with the conventional feeder hook of an automatic type metal ingot feeder and the feeder chain. lowered to itslowermost position, if the ingot is more or less accurately centered on the feeder hook, complete dislodgement takes place automatically. However, many times the ingot is carelessly placed upon the feeder hook in a manner such that the axis of the ingot is out of line with the axis of the hook and complete dislodgement of the ingot does not take place without a manual jiggling of the feeder chain by the feeder operator. This last necessary operation diverts the attention of the operator and accordingly it has been found that prior feeder hooks are unsatisfactory to effect automatic dislodgement oi the remaining socalled slip-oil ingot ear.

It is an object of the instant invention to provide a feeder hook in association with an automatic type metal ingot feeder of such contour as to effect automatic alignment of the slotted eared slip-01f ingot with the axis of the hook to insure the correct slip-off action upon the chain reaching its lowermost position.

It is a further object of the instant invention to provide a feeder hook having its ingot engaging portion so formed with sloping sides as to efiect automatic alignment of slotted eared slip-off type ingots and insure their automatic operation as intended.

Other objects and the nature and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following 1939,. Serial No. 249,486

description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a view in elevation of an automatic typemetal ingot feeder having associated with the feeder hook thereof the ear of a slotted eared slip-off type ingot;

Fig. 2 is aview in perspective of a feeder hook inaccordance with the invention;

Fig'. 3 is a side elevation of the feeder hook;

Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the feeder hook;

Fig. 5 is a sectional View taken along 1ines 5-5 of Fig. 3 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5 but of a modified form;

' Fig; 7 is a View similar to Fig. 5 but of a modified form;

Fig. 8 is a view similar to Fig. 5 but of a modified form;

Fig. 9 is'a schematic illustration of an out of alignment association of a slotted eared ingot and a conventional feeder hook; and,

Fig. 10 is a view similar to Fig. 9 but illustrating a similar slotted ear-ed ingot in association with a feeder hook in accordance with the inven tion.

'Referring to the drawing an automatic type metal ingot feeder 2!! is arranged above a melting pot 2| to lower an ingot thereinto in accordance with the level of molten metal within the pot as indicated by the float 22. In the position of the feeder illustrated in Fig. 1, the metal ingot has been lowered by the chain 23 and hook 2 1, with which the ingot was originally in alignment, to a position such that the level of the molten metal within the pot is above the lowermost portion of the hole 25 extending through the ear of the ingot. The respective centers of gravity of the sides 26 and 21 of the ingot ear being relatively remote from the original axis of the ingot, they must part from the hook as illustrated and fall into the melting pot without attention from the operator.

In order to insure automatic alignment of a slotted eared slip-01f type ingot, the hook 33 is provided with sloped side portions 3! and 32 and a relatively narrow ridged upper portion 33 adapted to fit between the adjacent hook engaging. ends of the ear portions 26 and 21 respectively, whereby the one usually assigned the task of associating metal ingots with the feeder may do so rapidly without very careful attention and yet be certain that the ingot will automatically align itself and stay aligned during the usual course of operation of the machine until the ingot ear reaches a definite place in relation to the molten bath when the time comes for complete automatic separation thereof from the feeder hook. Once the operator has engaged the ear of the slip-off ingot in a manner such that' the slot is associated with the ridge of the hook, no further attention need be given to the same by the operator and complete removal of the ear is assured when the hook has reached its lowermost position above the metal bath.

The lowermost portion of the hook is generally U-shaped as illustrated in Fig. 3 and the uppermost portion 34 is provided with a hole 35 whereby it may readily be associated with the feeder chain 23. The ridge 32 extends along the entire length of the lower U-shaped ingot engaging portion of the hook which is of gradual diminishing section from the lowermost portion to the tip 36 thereof. With this configuration the one threading the ingot ear with the hook may align the slot of the ear with the point 36 and slide the same downwardly thereover being guided by the ridge 32.

Not only may the section of the lowermost portion of the hook 24 be generally triangular as illustrated in Fig; 5 but it may take the forms illustrated in Figs. 6, 7 and 8 with the assurance of similar results to those described above, and the improper association of a. type metal slotted ear slip-off ingot with a conventional feeder hook in the manner diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. 9 prevented. With this latter arrangement, when the ingot 31 has been lowered to a level within the melting pot above the lowermost portion 38 of the hole 39, the portion 40 of the car will automatically fall into the melting pot but the portion 4| will hang on to the conventional hook 42 of circular cross section requiring the operator to manually disengage the same.

With the simple threading of the hook in accordance with my invention as illustrated in Fig. 10, automatic separation of the portions 25 and 21 respectively of the ingot car from the hook 24 is assured and the attention of the operator for this purpose not required.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in this device without departing from the spirit of the invention and therefore the invention is not limited to what is shown in the drawing and described in the specification but only as indicated in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. The combination with an automatic type metal ingot feeder of a hook adapted to lower slotted eared slip-off ingots into a melting pot, said hook comprising a lower ingot ear engaging portion, said hook portion having a section including an upper ridge adapted to extend within the slotted upper end of the ingot, said section having sides adjacent said ridge which are at an angle with the horizontal that is greater than the angle of repose of the combination of the ingot ear on the hook, whereby slipping off of both sides of a slotted eared ingot associated with said hook is assured when said ingot has been lowered within the melting pot to a level above the lowest point of said ear.

2. The combination with an automatic type metal ingot feeder of a hook adapted to lower slotted eared slip-off ingots into a melting pot, said hook comprising a lower ingot ear engaging portion, said hook portion having a section which is substantially triangular including a generally horizontal base, and two sloping sides connecting said base with the upper ridge formed by the meeting of such sides, said sides being at an angle with the horizontal that is greater than the angle of repose of the combination of the ingot car on the hook, whereby slipping 01f of both sides of a slotted eared ingot associated with said hook is assured when said ingot has been lowered within the melting pot to a level above the lowest point of said ear.

3. The structure recited in claim 1, the said sides being generally concave in nature.

4. The structure recited in claim 1, the said sides being generally convex in nature.

5. The structure recited in claim 1, said sec-- tion gradually diminishing to a point at the ingot receiving end of the hook in order to facilitate threading.

CORNELIUS JORDAN. EDWARD J. I-IUBELMEYER. 

